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COVID-19 ICU patients at risk of acute brain dysfunction, says study - Devdiscourse

The research, published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine journal, tracked the incidence of delirium and coma in over 2,000 COVID-19 patients admitted before April 28, 2020, to 69 adult intensive care units across 14 countries.According to the scientists, le…

COVID-19 patients admitted to intensive care in the early months of the pandemic experienced a higher burden of delirium and coma than is typically found in those hospitalised with acute respiratory failure, according to the largest study of its kind to date. The research, published in The LancetRespiratory Medicine journal, tracked the incidence of delirium and coma in over 2,000 COVID-19 patients admitted before April 28, 2020, to 69 adult intensive care units across 14 countries. According to the scientists, led by those at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in the US, the choice of sedative medications and curbs on family visitation played a role in increasing acute brain dysfunction for these patients. They said ICU delirium is associated with higher medical costs and greater risk of death and long-term ICU-related dementia. Nearly 82 per cent of the patients in the study were comatose for a median of 10 days, and 55 per cent were delirious for a median of three days. The scientists noted that acute brain dysfunction lasted for an average of 12 days. ''This is double what is seen in non-COVID ICU patients,'' said study co-author Brenda Pun from VUMC. The scientists believe COVID-19 could predispose patients to a higher burden of acute brain dysfunction. However, they also noted that patient care factors, some of which are related to pressures posed on health care by the pandemic, also appear to have played a significant role. With respect to COVID-19, the scientists believe there has been widespread abandonment of newer clinical protocols that are proven to help ward off the acute brain dysfunction that usually affects many critically ill patients. ''It is clear in our findings that many ICUs reverted to sedation practices that are not in line with best practice guidelines and we're left to speculate on the causes,'' Pun said. ''Early reports of COVID-19 suggested that the lung dysfunction seen required unique management techniques including deep sedation. In the process, key preventive measures against acute brain dysfunction went somewhat by the boards,'' she added. Analysing patient characteristics from electronic health records, and care practices and findings from clinical assessments, the scientists found that about 90 per cent of patients tracked in the study were invasively mechanical ventilated at some point during hospitalisation, and 67 per cent on the day of ICU admission. Patients receiving benzodiazepine sedative infusions were at 59 per cent higher risk of developing delirium, they added. In comparison, the patients who received family visitation were at 30 per cent lower risk of delirium, the study noted. ''There's no reason to think that, since the close of our study, the situation for these patients has changed,'' said study senior author, Pratik Pandharipande. ''These prolonged periods of acute brain dysfunction are largely avoidable. ICU teams need above all to return to lighter levels of sedation for these patients, frequent awakening and breathing trials, mobilisation and safe in-person or virtual visitation,'' Pandharipande added. (This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Health News Roundup: U.S. CDC reports 265,166 deaths from coronavirus; Gaza gets vital medical aid as hospitals struggle with rising infections and more - Devdiscourse

Italy reports 20,648 new coronavirus cases, 541 deaths on Sunday Italy reported 541 coronavirus-related deaths on Sunday, against 686 the day before, and 20,648 new infections, down from 26,323 on Saturday, the health ministry said.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. U.S. CDC reports 265,166 deaths from coronavirus The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Sunday reported a total 13,142,997 cases of new coronavirus, an increase of 143,333 from its previous count, and said the number of deaths had risen by 1,210 to 265,166. The CDC reported its tally of cases of the respiratory illness known as COVID-19, caused by the new coronavirus, as of 4 p.m. ET on Nov. 28 versus its previous report a day earlier. Gaza gets vital medical aid as hospitals struggle with rising infections The World Health Organization delivered 15 ventilators to Gaza hospitals on Sunday amid a spike in COVID-19 infections that has tested the Palestinian territory's under-developed health system. The donation of the intensive care devices, funded by Kuwait, came a week after local and international public health advisers said hospitals in the enclave could soon become overwhelmed. France must review COVID-19 crowd limits on church attendance France's State Council, the country's highest court, on Sunday ordered the government to review a law limiting the number of people in churches during religious services to 30. The Council said in a statement that the measure was not proportionate to coronavirus infection risks. India regulators probe alleged AstraZeneca shot reaction, trial continues The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is assisting an inquiry into an alleged adverse reaction during AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine trial, but has found no reason to recommend halting it, a senior official at the regulator said on Sunday. A 40-year-old man said in a complaint seen by Reuters that he had suffered serious "neurological and psychological" symptoms after receiving the vaccine in a trial being run by the British drugmaker's partner Serum Institute of India (SII). Spain's health workers protest against health service cuts Dancing and banging drums in the street, doctors and nurses protested in Madrid on Sunday against cuts which they say have left them struggling to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic. Singing "less flags and more nurses", about 4,000 protesters marched through the Spanish capital, the region hit hardest by the coronavirus. Italy reports 20,648 new coronavirus cases, 541 deaths on Sunday Italy reported 541 coronavirus-related deaths on Sunday, against 686 the day before, and 20,648 new infections, down from 26,323 on Saturday, the health ministry said. The first Western country hit by the virus, Italy has seen 54,904 COVID-19 fatalities since its outbreak emerged in February, the second highest toll in Europe after Britain. It has also registered 1.585 million cases to date. Turkey's COVID curfew fails to contain surging second wave Coronavirus deaths in Turkey rose to a record for the seventh consecutive day on Sunday and the number of new cases remained high despite efforts by President Tayyip Erdogan's government to contain a second wave of infections. Turkey is expected to report this week that its economy bounced back from a sharp coronavirus-induced slump earlier this year. But that recovery, key to Erdogan's sustained political support, could be threatened by the new outbreak. New York City public schools will begin to reopen with weekly COVID-19 testing New York City's public schools will begin to reopen for in-person learning on Dec. 7, starting with elementary schools for students whose parents agree to a weekly testing regimen for the novel coronavirus, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Sunday. The schools, which make up the country's largest school system, were closed less than two weeks ago after the citywide rate of coronavirus tests coming back positive exceeded a 3% benchmark agreed to by the mayor and the teachers' union. Canada blocks bulk exports of some prescription drugs in response to Trump import plan Canada on Saturday blocked bulk exports of prescription drugs if they would create a shortage at home, in response to outgoing U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to allow imports from Canada to lower some drug prices for Americans. "Certain drugs intended for the Canadian market are prohibited from being distributed for consumption outside of Canada if that sale would cause or worsen a drug shortage," Health Minister Patty Hajdu said in a statement. Democrat Schumer says $30 billion in federal funds needed to distribute COVID vaccine Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Sunday that $30 billion in federal funds was needed to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine as legislative negotiations over an economic relief bill remain stalled. Schumer, a Democrat, said that New York state alone would need "hundreds of millions" for distribution and education work around the distribution of the vaccine.

COVID-19 reinfection unlikely for at least 6 months, study finds - Devdiscourse

But the results of this study, carried out in a cohort of UK healthcare workers - who are among those at highest risk of contracting COVID-19 - suggest cases of reinfection are likely to remain extremely rare. "Being infected with COVID-19 does offer protect…

People who've had COVID-19 are highly unlikely to contract it again for at least six months after their first infection, according to a British study of healthcare workers on the frontline of fight against the coronavirus pandemic. The findings should offer some reassurance for the more than 51 million people worldwide who have been infected with the pandemic disease, researchers at the University of Oxford said. "This is really good news, because we can be confident that, at least in the short term, most people who get COVID-19 won't get it again," said David Eyre, a professor at Oxford's Nuffield Department of Population Health, who co-led the study. Isolated cases of re-infection with COVID-19, the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, had raised concerns that immunity might be short-lived and that recovered patients may swiftly fall sick again. But the results of this study, carried out in a cohort of UK healthcare workers - who are among those at highest risk of contracting COVID-19 - suggest cases of reinfection are likely to remain extremely rare. "Being infected with COVID-19 does offer protection against re-infection for most people for at least six months," Eyre said. "We found no new symptomatic infections in any of the participants who had tested positive for antibodies." The study, part of a major staff testing programme, covered a 30-week period between April and November 2020. Its results have not peer-reviewed by other scientists but were published before review on the MedRxiv website. During the study, 89 of 11,052 staff without antibodies developed a new infection with symptoms, while none of the 1,246 staff with antibodies developed a symptomatic infection. Staff with antibodies were also less likely to test positive for COVID-19 without symptoms, the researchers said, with 76 without antibodies testing positive, compared to only three with antibodies. Those three were all well and did not develop COVID-19 symptoms, they added. "We will continue to follow this cohort of staff carefully to see how long protection lasts and whether previous infection affects the severity of infection if people do get infected again," Eyre said. Also Read: British Sikh group loses High Court challenge for census ethnicity tick-box

Independent UN experts decry COVID vaccine hoarding: ‘No one is secure until all of us are’ - Devdiscourse

The only way to fight the COVID-19 crisis is to make affordable vaccines available to everyone, independent UN human rights experts said on Monday, underscoring that in an interconnected and interdependent world, “no one is secure until all of us are secure”.

This pandemic, with its global scale and enormous human cost, with no clear end in sight, requires a concerted, human-rights based and courageous response from all States, four UN experts together with members of a human rights working group said in a statement on universal access to vaccines. UN experts criticise countries that are trying to monopolise any future vaccine against #COVID19, saying the only way to fight the pandemic is to make affordable #vaccines available to everyone in the world: There is no room for nationalism https://t.co/VXs8IQ3FPhpic.twitter.com/8atVEAZT2w UN Special Procedures (@UN_SPExperts) November 9, 2020 Spiking ahead Last month, the World Bank estimated that the pandemic would push between 88 and 115 million people into extreme poverty this year, potentially climbing to a total of 150 million during 2021. And the UN World Food Programme (WFP) has doubled its pre-COVID-19 estimates of hungry people, to project that 265 million would face crisis levels, unless direct action is taken. No room for nationalism Engaging in a coordinated global effort to share vaccines across borders is the only means of effectively beating the coronavirus. The UN experts stressed, there is no room for nationalism in fighting this pandemic. Unfortunately, some Governments are trying to secure vaccines only for their own citizens, they detailed, adding however, that this would not achieve their intended purpose as a successful fight against the pandemic depends on mass immunization. Equitable access call The independent experts called on countries to support the COVAX initiative for global equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines led by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the World Health Organization (WHO). Under international human rights law, access to any COVID-19 vaccine and treatment must be made available to all who need them, within and across countries, especially those in vulnerable situations or living in poverty, the experts spelled out. They also called for international cooperation and assistance between developed and developing countries to ensure widespread sharing of technologies and know-how on COVID-19 vaccines and treatment. Additionally, the experts said that pharmaceutical companies have a responsibility not to put profits ahead of peoples rights to life and health and should accept restrictions on the patent protection of vaccines they develop. There is no room for nationalism in fighting this pandemic -- UN independent experts This pandemic has affected the whole world, they reminded. Now the world must put aside misplaced individual initiatives to monopolize vaccines and supplies, and work together to defeat it. Independent experts are appointed by the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council to examine and report back on a specific human rights theme or a country situation. The experts are not UN staff, nor are they paid for their work. Click here for the experts who signed this statement. Good news on the horizon Meanwhile, according to preliminary analysis, the first effective coronavirus vaccine to be developed so far, can prevent more than 90 per cent of people from contracting COVID-19. The pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and BioNTech, who developed the inoculation, described it as a great day for science and humanity, according to news reports. As the vaccine has been tested on tens of thousands of people across six countries with no safety concerns having been raised, the companies plan to take the vaccine to regulators for final approval, with the hope of it being in widespread use before the end of the year. There are multiple vaccines in the final stages of testing, but this is the first to show results from the phase three trial procedure. Visit UN News for more.

Moderna completes enrollment in large COVID-19 vaccine study - Devdiscourse

(https://bit.ly/2IOmy6U) Moderna said its study includes more than 11,000 participants from minority communities, including 6,000 Hispanic or Latin-American participants and more than 3,000 Black or African-American participants. The company said it would ev…

Moderna Inc said on Thursday it had completed the enrollment of 30,000 participants in a late-stage study testing its experimental coronavirus vaccine, with over a third of the participants from communities of color. Over 25,650 participants have so far received their second shot of the vaccine candidate, mRNA-1273, the company said. (https://bit.ly/2IOmy6U) Moderna said its study includes more than 11,000 participants from minority communities, including 6,000 Hispanic or Latin-American participants and more than 3,000 Black or African-American participants. The company said it would evaluate the study's risks and benefits before submitting an emergency-use application for the vaccine to the U.S. health regulator. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires at least two months of safety data after a full vaccination regime to review applications for emergency use authorization of an experimental vaccine.

UK study finds loss of smell most reliable indicator of COVID-19 - Devdiscourse

The cohort study, which assessed health data from primary care centres in London and is published in ‘PLOS Medicine' this week, found that 78 per cent of people who reported sudden loss of smell and/or taste at the height of the pandemic had SARS-CoV-2 or COV…

An acute loss of smell or taste is a "highly reliable" coronavirus indicator and should now be considered globally as a criterion for self-isolation, testing, and contact tracing, according to a research by UK scientists. The cohort study, which assessed health data from primary care centres in London and is published in 'PLOS Medicine' this week, found that 78 per cent of people who reported sudden loss of smell and/or taste at the height of the pandemic had SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19 antibodies. Of these people, 40 per cent did not have a cough or fever. According to experts, it is the first time such a figure has been calculated. "As we approach a second wave of infections, early recognition of COVID-19 symptoms by the public together with rapid self-isolation and testing will be of vital importance to limit the disease's spread," said lead author professor Rachel Batterham, from University College London (UCL) Medicine and UCL Hospitals. "Our findings show that loss of smell and taste is a highly reliable indicator that someone is likely to have COVID-19 and if we are to reduce the spread of this pandemic, it should now be considered by governments globally as a criterion for self-isolation, testing, and contact tracing," said Batterham. "While people in the UK who experience sudden onset loss of smell or taste are advised to self-isolate and seek a test, at a global level few countries recognise this symptom as a COVID-19 indicator: most focus on fever and respiratory symptoms," she said. Recruitment to the study took place between April 23 and May 14 at the peak of the pandemic by sending text messages to people registered with a number of primary care centres in London who had reported sudden loss in their sense of smell and/or taste. A total of 590 participants enrolled via a web-based platform and responded to questions about loss of smell and taste and other COVID-19 related symptoms. Of these, 567 then had a telemedicine consultation with a healthcare professional who confirmed the history of their symptoms and supervised a test to find out if they had SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. A total of 77.6 per cent of 567 people with smell and/or taste loss had SARS-CoV-2 antibodies; of these 39.8 per cent had neither cough nor fever, and participants with loss of smell were three times more likely to have SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, compared with those with loss of taste. "Our research suggests a key public health message should be: people who notice a loss in their ability to smell everyday household odours such as garlic, onions, coffee, and perfumes should self-isolate and seek a coronavirus PCR swab test," Batterham said. While it has been known for some time that COVID-19 can cause loss or reduced ability to smell (anosmia) or taste, without cough or fever, existing data had suggested a prevalence of smell and/or taste loss in the range of 31-85 per cent in COVID-19 patients. This is the first study of its kind to try and establish the proportion of those who had experienced loss of smell and or taste as having COVID-19. The study was funded by the National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centre at UCLH, where Batterham is Obesity Theme Director..

Second alignment plane of solar system discovered - Devdiscourse

A study of comet motions indicates that the solar system has a second alignment plane. Analytical investigation of the orbits of long-period comets shows that the aphelia of the comets, the point where they are farthest from the Sun, tend to fall close to eit…

A study of comet motions indicates that the solar system has a second alignment plane. Analytical investigation of the orbits of long-period comets shows that the aphelia of the comets, the point where they are farthest from the Sun, tend to fall close to either the well-known ecliptic plane where the planets reside or a newly discovered 'empty ecliptic.' This has important implications for models of how comets originally formed in the solar system. In the solar system, the planets and most other bodies move in roughly the same orbital plane, known as the ecliptic, but there are exceptions such as comets. Comets, especially long-period comets taking tens of thousands of years to complete each orbit, are not confined to the area near the ecliptic; they are seen coming and going in various directions. Models of solar system formation suggest that even long-period comets originally formed near the ecliptic and were later scattered into the orbits observed today through gravitational interactions, most notably with the gas giant planets. But even with planetary scattering, the comet's aphelion, the point where it is farthest from the Sun, should remain near the ecliptic. Other, external forces are needed to explain the observed distribution. The solar system does not exist in isolation; the gravitational field of the Milky Way Galaxy in which the solar system resides also exerts a small but non-negligible influence. Arika Higuchi, an assistant professor at the University of Occupational and Environmental Health in Japan and previously a member of the NAOJ RISE Project, studied the effects of the galactic gravity on long-period comets through analytical investigation of the equations governing orbital motion. She showed that when the galactic gravity is taken into account, the aphelia of long-period comets tend to collect around two planes. First the well-known ecliptic, but also a second "empty ecliptic." The ecliptic is inclined with respect to the disk of the Milky Way by about 60 degrees. The empty ecliptic is also inclined by 60 degrees but in the opposite direction. Higuchi calls this the "empty ecliptic" based on mathematical nomenclature and because initially, it contains no objects, only later being populated with scattered comets. Higuchi confirmed her predictions by cross-checking with numerical computations carried out in part on the PC Cluster at the Center for Computational Astrophysics of NAOJ. Comparing the analytical and computational results to the data for long-period comets listed in NASA's JPL Small-Body Database showed that the distribution has two peaks, near the ecliptic and empty ecliptic as predicted. This is a strong indication that the formation models are correct and long-period comets formed on the ecliptic. However, Higuchi cautions, "The sharp peaks are not exactly at the ecliptic or empty ecliptic planes, but near them. An investigation of the distribution of observed small bodies has to include many factors. Detailed examination of the distribution of long-period comets will be our future work. The all-sky survey project known as the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) will provide valuable information for this study." (ANI)

Astronomers determine how disk galaxies evolve so smoothly - Devdiscourse

Computer simulations are showing astrophysicists how massive clumps of gas within galaxies scatter some stars from their orbits, eventually creating the smooth, exponential fade in the brightness of many galaxy disks.

Computer simulations are showing astrophysicists how massive clumps of gas within galaxies scatter some stars from their orbits, eventually creating the smooth, exponential fade in the brightness of many galaxy disks. Researchers from Iowa State University, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and IBM Research have advanced studies they started nearly 10 years ago. They originally focused on how massive clumps in young galaxies affect star orbits and create galaxy disks featuring bright centers fading to dark edges. (As Curtis Struck, an Iowa State professor of physics and astronomy, wrote in a 2013 research summary: "In galaxy disks, the scars of a rough childhood, and adolescent blemishes, all smooth away with time.") Now, the group has co-authored a new paper that says their ideas about the formation of exponential disks apply to more than young galaxies. It's also a process that is robust and universal in all kinds of galaxies. The exponential disks, after all, are common in spiral galaxies, dwarf elliptical galaxies, and some irregular galaxies. How can astrophysicists explain that? By using realistic models to track star scattering within galaxies, "We feel we have a much deeper understanding of the physical processes that resolve this almost-50-year-old key problem," Struck said. Gravitational impulses from massive clumps alter the orbits of stars, the researchers found. As a result, the overall star distribution of the disk changes, and the exponential brightness profile is a reflection of that new stellar distribution. The astrophysicists' findings are reported in a paper just published online by the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Co-authors are Struck; Jian Wu, an Iowa State doctoral student in physics and astronomy; Elena D'Onghia, an associate professor of astronomy at Wisconsin; and Bruce Elmegreen, a research scientist at IBM's Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, New York. Stars are scattered, disks are smoothed The latest computer modelling - led by Wu - is a capstone topping years of model improvements, Struck said. Previous models treated the gravitational forces of galaxy components more approximately, and researchers studied fewer cases. The latest models show how star clusters and clumps of interstellar gases within galaxies can change the orbits of nearby stars. Some star-scattering events significantly change star orbits, even catching some stars in loops around massive clumps before they can escape to the general flow of a galaxy disk. Many other scattering events are less powerful, with fewer stars scattered and orbits remaining more circular. "The nature of the scattering is far more complex than we previously understood," Struck said. "Despite all this complexity on small scales, it still averages out to the smooth light distribution on large scales." The models also say something about the time it takes for these exponential galaxy disks to form, according to the researchers' paper. The types of clumps and initial densities of the disks affect the speed of the evolution, but not the final smoothness in brightness. Speed, in this case, is a relative term because the timescales for these processes are billions of years. Over all those years, and even with model galaxies where stars are initially distributed in a variety of ways, Wu said the models show the ubiquity of the star-scattering-to-exponential-falloff process. "Stellar scattering is very general and universal," he said. "It works to explain the formation of exponential disks in so many cases." (ANI)

Science News Roundup: COVID often goes undiagnosed in hospital workers; Long neglected after landmark discovery and more - Devdiscourse

COVID-19 often undiagnosed in frontline hospital workers Long neglected after landmark discovery, armored dinosaur finally gets its due When the bones of the early armored dinosaur Scelidosaurus were unearthed in 1858 in west Dorset, England, they comprised …

Following is a summary of current science news briefs. COVID-19 often goes undiagnosed in hospital workers; virus may impair heart functions The following is a roundup of some of the latest scientific studies on the novel coronavirus and efforts to find treatments and vaccines for COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus. COVID-19 often undiagnosed in frontline hospital workers. Long neglected after landmark discovery, armored dinosaur finally gets its due When the bones of the early armored dinosaur Scelidosaurus were unearthed in 1858 in west Dorset, England, they comprised the first complete dinosaur skeleton ever identified. But aside from cursory papers by pioneering British paleontologist Richard Owen in 1861 and 1863 that incompletely described its anatomy, Scelidosaurus was long neglected despite the landmark nature of its discovery. Scientists see downsides to top COVID-19 vaccines from Russia, China High-profile COVID-19 vaccines developed in Russia and China share a potential shortcoming: They are based on a common cold virus that many people have been exposed to, potentially limiting their effectiveness, some experts say. CanSino Biologics' vaccine, approved for military use in China, is a modified form of adenovirus type 5, or Ad5. The company is in talks to get emergency approval in several countries before completing large-scale trials, the Wall Street Journal reported last week.

Cambridge university aims for autumn trials of coronavirus vaccine after UK funding - Devdiscourse

The University of Cambridge is aiming to start clinical trials of its possible coronavirus vaccine in the autumn after it received 1.9 million pounds ($2.5 million) in funding from the British government, the university said on Wednesday.

The University of Cambridge is aiming to start clinical trials of its possible coronavirus vaccine in the autumn after it received 1.9 million pounds ($2.5 million) in funding from the British government, the university said on Wednesday. The scientists behind the vaccine said their approach, which uses genetic sequences of all known coronaviruses to hone the immune response, could help avoid the adverse effects of a hyper-inflammatory immune response. "We're looking for chinks in its armour, crucial pieces of the virus that we can use to construct the vaccine to direct the immune response in the right direction," Jonathan Heeney, head of the Laboratory of Viral Zoonotics at the University of Cambridge, said. "Ultimately we aim to make a vaccine that will not only protect from SARS-CoV-2, but also other related coronaviruses that may spill over from animals to humans." No vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus which causes COVID-19 has yet been proven clinically effective, though 30 that use a range of technologies are in human trials already. The Cambridge candidate, DIOS-CoVax2, is DNA based. Computer-generated antigen structures are encoded by synthetic genes, which can then re-programme the body's immune system to produce antibodies against the coronavirus. This DNA vector method has been shown to be safe and effective at stimulating an immune response in other pathogens in early stage trials, the university said. Although it is operating at a later timetable than some other vaccine candidates, the DIOS-CoVax2 shot would not need to be stored at cold temperatures and could be delivered without needles, possibly making the widespread distribution of the vaccine easier. "This could be a major breakthrough in being able to give a future vaccine to huge numbers of people across the world," said Saul Faust, Director of the NIHR Southampton Clinical Research Facility. ($1 = 0.7611 pounds)

ARIES observes many such galaxies using 1.3-meter DFOT and GMRT - Devdiscourse

According to the study conducted by the ARIES team, the 1420.40 MHz images of several intense star-forming dwarf galaxies indicated that hydrogen in these galaxies is very disturbed.

Amidst the billions of galaxies in the universe, a large number are tiny ones 100 times less massive than our own Milky-way galaxy. While most of these tiny tots called dwarf galaxies form stars at a much slower rate than the massive ones, some dwarf galaxies are seen forming new stars at a mass-normalized rate 10-100 times more than that of the Milky-way galaxy. These activities, however, do not last longer than a few tens of million-years, a period which is much shorter than the age of these galaxies - typically a few billion years. Scientists observing dozens of such galaxies using two Indian telescopes have found that the clue to this strange behaviour of these galaxies lies in the disturbing hydrogen distribution in these galaxies and also in recent collisions between two galaxies. To understand the nature of star formation in dwarf galaxies astronomers Dr Amitesh Omar and his former student Dr Sumit Jaiswal from Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES), an autonomous institute of Department of Science & Technology (DST), Govt. of India observed many such galaxies using the 1.3-meter Devasthal Fast Optical Telescope (DFOT) near Nainital and the Giant Meter wave Radio Telescope (GMRT). While the former operating at optical wavelengths sensitive to detect optical line radiation emanating from the ionized Hydrogen, in the latter 30 dishes of 45-meter diameter, each worked in tandem and produced sharp interferometric images via spectral line radiation at 1420.40 MHz coming from the neutral Hydrogen in galaxies. Star formation at a high rate requires a very high density of Hydrogen in the galaxies. According to the study conducted by the ARIES team, the 1420.40 MHz images of several intense star-forming dwarf galaxies indicated that hydrogen in these galaxies is very disturbed. While one expects a nearly symmetric distribution of hydrogen in well-defined orbits in galaxies, hydrogen in these dwarf galaxies is found to be irregular and sometimes not moving in well-defined orbits. Some hydrogen around these galaxies is also detected in forms of isolated clouds, plumes, and tails as if some other galaxy recently has collided or brushed away with these galaxies, and gas is scattered as debris around the galaxies. The optical morphologies sometimes revealed multiple nuclei and high concentration of ionized hydrogen in the central region. Although galaxy-galaxy collision was not directly detected, various signatures of it were revealed through radio, and optical imaging and these are helping to build up a story. The research, therefore, suggests that recent collisions between two galaxies trigger intense star formation in these galaxies. The findings of this research with detailed images of 13 galaxies will be appearing in the forthcoming issue of Monthly Notices of Royal Astronomical Society (MNRAS) Journal published by the Royal Astronomical Society, the U.K. It will help astronomers to understand the formation of stars and evolution of less massive galaxies in the Universe. (With Inputs from PIB)

CDC head warns pregnant women with COVID-19 face greater risks - Devdiscourse

The CDC has found that pregnant women are more likely to be admitted to the ICU and to be put on mechanical ventilators than non-pregnant women, he said. Redfield said that more infections among young people in Florida and Texas could partly be attributed to…

Pregnant women have increased risk of severe COVID-19 compared to women who are not pregnant, the head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Prevention Robert Redfield told reporters on Thursday, warning that states with rising coronavirus cases need to take action. The CDC has found that pregnant women are more likely to be admitted to the ICU and to be put on mechanical ventilators than non-pregnant women, he said. Redfield said that more infections among young people in Florida and Texas could partly be attributed to an increase in diagnosing illness among that group, whose members are less likely to be hospitalized than older people. He said the agency plans to use social media platform Tik Tok to try to reach young people with warnings to keep a distance of 6 feet, wear a face covering and avoid large gatherings.